A Starlet Adventure
by Miss Queen of the Universe
Summary: Ramandu's daughter has an adventure on her own in a different world. A world she had never before imagined herself in. She makes friends with some humans. She has to grant a favor and in return she has to go back home too. But as she explores on her own, she realises that the world is not a simple place. She unknowingly rediscovers herself. Fate can play strange games!
1. A Surprise

**A Surprise**

She was sitting near the water staring at her own reflection when it all happened pretty suddenly.

Verity had silver hair which was up till her knee and big grey eyes. She had a small mouth, pointed chin and a pale face. She was very tall and certainly striking to look at. To her, life was only living on her father's island, roaming in those woods and occasionally staring at her own reflection quite miserably 'night by night'.

Specifically because her father Ramandu was a 'retired star'. I mean an actual star that is seen in the night sky. A star about to die. Verity was his one and only daughter but she felt pretty lonely staying there with only her father to talk to her. She had never lived in a community but she longed to live in one and have friends.

After all a beautiful and kind girl like her deserved better.

That evening or maybe twilight, she was sitting on a rock braiding her hair, her feet dangling in the sea-water waiting for the cold night to come. The trees behind her had their branches drooping over the water in some kind of a shelter. It was all pretty peaceful, actually, a little too peaceful to be true.

Verity shuddered when this peace was disturbed by a sudden boom somewhere near her. She got up and began walking towards the sound, which led her further up along the coastline to a place where the long branches of trees had made a kind of hollow shape big enough for a person to walk through it. But this was not a novelty for her. But what was happening now was certainly a novelty or rather pretty life changing. Something like the shape of a door was burned at that exact spot and it was slowly opening! She shivered as a blinding light streamed through it. Before she could even react properly, she felt as if the door was pulling her towards it like a magnet.

After that whatever happened made her feel dizzy which she rarely felt. Verity felt as if someone was trying to drown her but she didn't feel wet. Her body felt weightless and helpless. Her stomach knotted and the next thing she knew was that her feet hit wooden flooring and with a sudden jolt she fell face first on the floor.

A second boom rang and a door directly above her head shut with it. Verity sat up coughing and massaging her forehead. Her head ached and a bitter taste filled her mouth. She got up dusting herself, trying to get bearing of her surroundings. She was standing in the middle of a long, beautiful, high-ceilinged room with tall, French windows bringing in bright light. The long velvet draperies looked rich and so was the carpet on floor which seemed to have been woven from an artist's hand. There was a big fireplace in front of her and a very cosy armchair besides it.

The only occupants of this rich and beautiful room were Verity and a white cat. This all seemed strange but dazzling. She had never seen such a huge room before and certainly not been in one. Though, she wondered why the room was so dusty and covered with cobwebs. Her father had told her plenty of stories of the kings and queens of Cair Paravel in Narnia. Of course she still couldn't tell where she was but she had an odd feeling in her stomach. She remembered those stories now and that also reminded her of her father. She quickly pushed the sad thought away and concentrated on the stories.

He had explained with details how magnificent those palaces had been. Chandeliers and rich draperies, skillfully woven carpets, huge windows, towers and turrets, crowns studded with gemstones had all been a part of it but standing in that almost empty room made her shiver. Yet she certainly felt curious to find-out where she was. She felt as if it was a dream come true or possibly it was still a dream….

She wanted to visit a palace see how kings and queens lived. She wanted to see the prosperity of castles. She wanted to roam around with royal folk and noblemen. She simply craved to see the outside world with its splendours and charm. She hated wandering on the island every day. She felt totally eerie. It was as if she did not belong there.

Verity had no surname which made her feel awkward for no particular reason. She had not even met a person with a proper surname in her land. Everyone was either a Narnian or an Archenlander or a Star like her father or a member of some other race or land. No one had a surname but still…..

She turned to face the other end of the room where a set of large double-doors could be seen firmly shut. She began walking first slowly, then briskly and by the time she reached the doors she realized that she had been running. What she hadn't noticed before was that the door was locked from outside. She suddenly felt stupid to have run across the room for nothing. She was about to turn away from the door in dismay when she heard something which quickened her pulse – _voices._

Her first reaction was to try and listen what they were saying but then she realized that they were nearing the room so she must hide. If she was unwelcome there, which she most probably was, then she had to make sure no one saw her. Besides, the door was so thick that the voices were barely audible.

When she looked around for a place to cover herself, she felt helpless to know something which had been pretty obvious to her before. The _room was too empty_ for her to get a hiding place. Panic rose up into her mind and her heartbeats quickened. Her mind began racing. It somehow always did when she was in trouble which was rare. She decided that the best way to hide her from the immediate danger was to hide behind the thick draperies.

She ran towards the nearest window and snatched the drapery. Shaking and fumbling with thick cloth she finally managed to get behind it and cover herself with it. When she finally got behind it, did she realize something with horror and dismay. The sunlight hit her back which made her almost crumple to the ground and before she could stop herself, she blacked out.

Then two things happened simultaneously. The large double-doors of the room flew open as the bolt on the other side was pulled aside by whoever the voices belonged to and at the same time Verity's limp, pale body fell out of the curtains!


	2. Lux and Ace

_**Lux and Ace.**_

When her eyes opened, she found herself lying on a four-poster bed (something she never had in her life before) covered in blankets. Her head was now throbbing and she felt weak. She looked around to find out where she was. The room was pretty dark and certainly smaller than the room she had been in earlier. She was about to try and get out of the bed when she noticed something she hadn't earlier. A girl sitting in a chair at the foot of her bed, smiled at her.

This new girl had golden hair but dark brown eyes. She had pouted lips and a freckly face. She wasn't very tall but she still looked the same age as Verity but then she reminded herself that stars were ageless and lived for millions of years. So she couldn't be compared to her. There was nothing in the girl that suggested that she looked beautiful. But she looked very friendly and understanding. Not sharp or brave or intelligent or badass. Yet she was not weak either.

Verity couldn't understand what to make of her. She had never met another girl like her so she had no idea what to say to her. But apparently the other girl solved all of her problems. She rose from her chair and walked over to Verity's side as soon as she saw her wake up. She extended her hand and said, "Good evening! I am your nurse for the time being. I mean till Dr Ace Mines comes. I am worried as to why he is getting late."

Verity looked puzzled. She had never even heard of such things as doctors before. But "Who are you?" was all she asked. The girl looked at her with narrowed eyes and an odd smile as if considering her reply carefully. Then her expression cleared slightly and she said, "I could actually ask you the same question since you are not supposed to be here."

Verity swallowed hard before replying, "I am Verity. Daughter of the great star Ramandu and a believer of the Lord Aslan."

The other girl stared at her with half confusion and _as if she had come from an alien planet._ "I….. I don't understand you. Great star…. Did you mean a rock star or a pop star or just a celebrity? And who is Lord Aslan? Is he a land lord or a king?" she asked. Verity looked at her as if she had been hit by a wave of cold water. She sucked in her breath sharply. _What are rock stars and pop stars?_ She thought in astonishment. But what bothered her most was the fact that the other girl didn't know Aslan! In Narnia at least, every born creature knew his name. For years and years and from generation to generation his legend has been passed on and this girl didn't know who he was! How shocking is that?

The girl had been studying her all this time pretty curiously. Verity forced herself to get out of the bed. She stood in front of the other girl and spoke defiantly, "Look here lady, you have insulted the Lord Aslan and no one will forgive you for that. But now I want to go home and you are going to let me. Understand?"

She opened the door and was about to walk out in the passage when she banged straight into someone and fell down on the floor. Verity sat up and looked up to see a boy standing in the doorway looking totally astonished. He stared at her with his wide protuberant eyes. She noticed that his hair was spiked and stood straight up so that it looked like a porcupine in its full form. Besides, its color which was reddish-orange suggested that he might have been washing his hair with tomato soup. He wore glasses over his turquoise colored eyes. His nose was slightly crooked and he too like the other girl had freckles over his face.

He was skinny and short. He was even shorter than the girl. Verity stood up angrily dusting her flowing, shining dress. "Now who are you?" she barked.

The boy almost stuttered before answering, "Didn't Lux tell you anything before?"

The girl who was apparently Lux came forward and said, "I did tell her about you but she was going on blabbing some nonsense. By the way, her father is I think a rock star. She also said that her name is Verity. Am I right?"

Lux turned to look at Verity. While the poor patient felt all her anger inflate like a balloon. She flopped down on the bed almost on the verge of crying. She wanted to be angry with them but she couldn't get. What the boy and girl were talking about made no sense to her and now it seemed that what she was talking about equally made no sense to them. She felt hopeless and homesick now.

She turned to look at the boy and said, "So… it means you are that Doctor or something this girl was talking about, right? I don't remember your name. What is it again?"

"Ace Mines is my name. But I am not a doctor. It's just that His Majesty has appointed me apparently to take care of hurt and sick people. I don't think though that he cares if anyone falls sick. All he thinks about is his profit." The boy replied wistfully. Lux who had been grinning before looked a little sternly at the boy.

"That's enough for the time being Ace. We must first listen from Verity. Her story is more important. By the way, I am Lux Mines. I am Ace's elder sister. Now calm down and _please_ tell us your story. How did you come here?" The girl's tone seemed to change as quickly as a chameleon might change colours. There didn't seem any other way to get out of this place but to tell the whole story to Lux and Ace Mines as clearly as she possibly could. Verity quickly bit back her tears and sat up straight. She took a deep breath before beginning to speak. She realized that her voice was unwavering, calm and controlled.

"I don't know what a rock star or pop star is but my father is a Star. A real star like the one which is seen in the night sky. I am a Starlet. I am a young star. I live on an island near Narnia or rather at the beginning of the end of the world. My father is now almost a dying star and I am the only one he has to spend time with these days. I know for all these years of my life I had been craving for friends but I guess I was wrong. I must go home now."

"But why did you faint like that? How did you manage to appear in locked room?" Ace asked. Verity sighed. Lux looked at her narrowing her eyes again. There was silence. Then Verity spoke, "I just said that I am a star. Sunlight outside the window was so strong that it weakened me considerably. As for appearing in the locked room, I don't know it myself. I was peacefully sitting on the seashore and I heard a noise and I went to check what is was and after that I only remember that I fell on the wooden flooring of that room. I tried to get out of the room but I heard voices so I hid behind the curtains and then I fainted. Happy?"

Lux and Ace looked at each other as if trying to make sense of what Verity said. There was another silence in the room but this one was pretty long. Verity got up and looked around at the room. She noticed things she hadn't before. There was a writing desk in one corner of the room (which Verity had no idea what it was) and beside it was a small window through which moonlight poured in the room. A sudden breeze made her almost feel at home but she reminded herself not to feel like that. She looked down at herself and then realized how much she was glowing in the dark. She spread out her arms and she felt a cool blue flame light her up. It was nothing new to her. This happened every night and she twinkled like a star. Bright and fresh and strong each night.

Her eyes drifted over to Lux and Ace who were gaping at her, their eyes wide and full of - horror or astonishment - she couldn't tell but she lowered her arms. "So? Now do you believe me? I _am_ a young star." She felt herself smile at them almost warmly as she said this. Her anger melted as easily as ice melts after heating. Somehow she knew one thing, walking with royal folk might not be so good as knowing that there still can be someone who will believe her other than her father. She suddenly felt the urge to call them her friends though she felt thoroughly astonished with herself for that. "Now how about you two tell me your story? After all even I want to know more about you and your world."

"What is there to tell?" Lux asked.

"Everything. Starting from the meaning of rock stars and what this place is." Verity said with a grin.

"Well, then it is going to take a long time. I don't think we have so much of time though. I shall tell it to you later but you must rest now. We have to go. We will meet you tomorrow evening. Till then goodbye and goodnight."

Verity frowned as if she did not like the idea that she would be spending an entire day in the room but said nothing. Ace walked out of the room and Lux followed him closing the door behind her. She suddenly felt lonely and lost again.


	3. His Majesty's demand

_3 His Majesty's Demand_

The whole place smelled of jasmine perfume. Verity felt like sneezing at the smell. Her head was already throbbing not only with the strong smell but also the sunlight. It seemed that it was too strong here. She felt sad for herself for being so weak. But she had fixed one thing in her mind that whatever happens she was not going to be weak in front of whoever this 'His Majesty' was.

It had been a few days since she had first appeared in that world and she had talked to Lux and Ace many times by now. They had become good friends of hers. But still many things were a puzzle to her like why couldn't she go back just like she had come here or why everyone obeyed this His Majesty so much (who apparently didn't have a name or maybe that Lux didn't know of) whoever he was? Why was she there in the first place so suddenly and basically why were Lux and Ace there? They didn't seem to belong to this world according to them and they too had been pulled into all of this.

Lux and Ace had been providing her with many stories about their world (which seemed a third place and totally different from Verity's homeland as well as this world. How many total worlds were there!) and Verity listened to them attentively. They told her about a school where they were taught different subjects and their teachers who taught them, they told her about their own families and their household festivities, they described the playgrounds and gardens they played in.

All of this was new for the poor Starlet who had never experienced this kind of carefree and jolly pleasant life. Inwardly when she listened to this kind of stories she actually craved to go with them to their world. But she knew at the moment going anywhere was impossible. All of her problems were going to be solved after meeting 'His Majesty'.

By the time they reached the court Verity had seen most of the castle and was really exhausted with the walk. The Starlet had imagined a royal court to be a huge room with silk curtains and large airy windows and gold thrones with gemstones studded beautifully on them. What she saw was nothing even near to the idea.

The court was a large arena with small windows right at the top of their heads and the burning sunlight flooded through it, the only source of light in there. It was a circular place with dark black veils of some kind let down from the ceiling right to floor which was a hard stone one. Verity was dying to know what was behind those black veils but she couldn't somehow take her eyes off the direct view which was in front of her.

The throne was made of animal bones and the bones were attached to each other with what Verity suspected was hair of different colors and lengths (The hair didn't seem to be of animals' though). The bones were carved with intricate designs which no one had been yet able to make out what it meant. Comparative to the surroundings of the court and the depressing throne, the man sitting in it wasn't huge and stolid or scary and hideous or even evil. He actually seemed really tiny and underfed and extremely funny to look at.

His crown looked like a clown cap made of different bright colors. He wore robes which were longer than his body and they too had attractive colors and odd hilarious designs which very much resembled a circus. One was of a cartoon lion blowing fire, one of a monkey applying lipstick to his mouth and one of a few dwarfs dancing around a rat. The man was holding a bowl of toffees and cupcakes having a variety of colors such as rose pink, lemon yellow, grey green, neon orange, bright purple and indigo. The man looked so out of the place and odd that Verity was forced to laugh in spite of the mysterious and terrible court room.

It made her wonder even more as to why anyone even paid attention to him. Lux and Ace exchanged glances. The guard who had brought her poked her spine with his dagger until blood began trickling down her back. The pain shook her considerably and she immediately stopped laughing.

"Laughter is strictly prohibited in my kingdom!" a voice which Verity considered to be that of the funny little man, boomed. Suddenly nothing seemed funny.

"As for business, I come to know that you are the child of the Folks of the kingdom afar. Is that true?"

"The Folks? Which folks?" Verity asked mesmerized.

"The shining folks with trickery in their blood." His Majesty snapped.

"Shining folks!? We do shine but we are not called 'The Shining Folks'. We are stars. We twinkle in the night sky and guide lost travelers. We don't trick anyone." Verity replied, indignation returning to her voice. She simply forgot her pain.

"No one, I repeat, no one speaks to me this way! Whoever you are, you have been sent here for a purpose and without completing it you are not going anywhere."

"But… but that's not fair! I was pulled into all of this without giving any notice. I didn't have time to think or even inform my father. He will be worrying about me. I must go back home." Verity complained. She was not going to stay there at any rate. She felt agitated.

"I said that you are goin' nowhere. I don't care what your father thinks. I have a demand to make. Unless you complete that task I can't allow you to go home."

Verity bit back her tears and began thinking of a way to get out of this situation. Just then an idea struck her. She knew it was risky but she had to try. She had no guarantee if she will be sent home in the end but she just couldn't stand there like a dumb. She was a very determined girl and that obviously forbade her to give up.

"Well then Your Majesty, I must put forth my decision. If you don't like it then I don't complete your task and then I won't mind dying. But if you do like it then it would I promise end up profiting both of us. What do you say, should I put forth my proposal or….."

She let the sentence hang in mid air and put her full strength in her words. The pain was blinding her slightly so that she couldn't study the other's face. But she knew by the silence that His Majesty was considering this proposal. "Fine, say what you have to say. I shall decide after that." Came the thoughtful reply.

"Your Majesty, my offer to you is this that if I have to complete your wish then I must get a chance to make a wish too. I must get something in return for my efforts. Do you agree? Remember only if you accept this offer will I do your work." Verity rejoiced to herself as she said this but was careful not to let this joy in her voice as she made her offer. Her voice was steady and even.

"I need time to think over your offer."

Verity had the guts left to laugh again. She could have doubled over if the guard hadn't placed his razor-sharp dagger on her right shoulder made blood spill out. Before His Majesty could say anything, Ace spoke up, "Your Majesty, sorry to disturb you but I must take my patient to her room. She needs rest. Your guard has hurt her enough." With that he pulled her out of the room without waiting for the man's permission. His sister followed. They walked the corridors silently. Ace had a firm grip on Verity's arm which the Starlet found very uncomfortable but she said nothing. It was for the first time that her beautiful robes were stained with blood. In her world, she had never seen such a variety of weapons as she saw adorned the walls.

So never had she needed to use them nor had anyone used them on her. She was born to help people not be their slave. She too had self-respect and according to that she was furious with the guard for using a weapon against her when she had none.

She was suddenly whisked into reality when Ace nearly shoved her inside her room. "Are you mad or are you a complete fool?!" he yelled at her. He seemed to be more furious than she was. "Haven't you got any brains!? You were literally bargaining with His Majesty. You think he is going to leave you alive?"

Verity felt completely taken aback. That was the wisest thing to do and Ace was angry! "Excuse me, but no one talks to me like that. I've had enough from that His Majesty. Now I am not going to hear you insult me, Ace." She fumed. Her eyes were watery with anger and pain.

"No one ever yelled at me even for my mistakes and today what I did was not even a mistake. This is the only way out."

"Oh God! You don't understand me. I know you tried your best but you don't know him. He might order his guards tonight to imprison you or kidnap you. He might even abduct Lux or me."

"COWARD! Are you afraid of such stupid things? This place is anyways a prison, isn't it? Are we not abducted from our homes? Why then should we fear death?" she retorted. "I don't know about you but I am not going bow down in front of that king!"

Silence fell in the room. Verity sank down on the bed weeping. She suddenly realized how much her life had changed in a few days. She wouldn't have hurt a fly back at home. She had been very timid and always crying for smallest of things. Never had she thought that someday just to get back home she might stop fearing death. She had actually never feared death since stars live for billions of years and by that time they had begin to fear life itself. But it had never occurred to her that she would have to face the danger of dying someday. Now it seemed that she would probably have to die even before that day, that her life would be cut short without much notice.

"We are not cowards Verity. But we have lost hope of going back home. Too much of time has passed and now it almost seems impossible that there is any place called home. It seems too far away." Lux said sadly sighing.

"Lux, even I thought for many years that my getting any friends was impossible. I thought that I would never reach out to that world. But I did and today I have two good friends who have helped me so much. Now let me help you. Trust me Lux, please."


	4. A Decision

A Decision.

A week had passed by and there was no reply from the monarch. 'Surely,' Verity thought, 'it was not so hard a decision to be taken. Why would he take so long to decide on her offer?'

She had not got the chance to even talk to her friends or to enquire as to what was going with His Majesty. She was certainly very tired of sitting in the same room and doing nothing all day long. So one evening she peeped out into the corridor and waited. She wanted some maid to come along in order to put her plan in action. After sometime a woman of Verity's height entered the corridor. She wore clothes like a nun. Her hair covered with a pale blue bonnet. Her ankle-length dress was of the same color. She wore glasses over her slightly wrinkled thin face.

Verity picked up a metal plate and positioned herself at the door. When the woman walked by, Verity immediately pounced on her. The sudden attack took the woman by surprise and she did not even scream for help when Verity hit the plate on her head. The woman fell unconscious at Verity's feet.

The starlet dragged the woman back into her room and shut the door. A few minutes later, the starlet opened the door and stepped out into the corridor. Shutting the door back, she began walking in the corridor. The blue bonnet hid her silver hair perfectly. The dress too fitted her well. It proved to be a good disguise. She kept walking until she came to a junction where the passage separated into three ways.

The left hand side passage she knew went to the court room. The centre corridor was too sunny and lighted. The right hand side passage was much darker and ended up at a staircase. She decided to explore the right hand side corridor. It was a passage filled with dying candles and landscape paintings. The paintings mostly captured deserts with various types of cacti or snow-covered peaks and lands. There did not seem to be any greenery like Narnia and Archenland. It made Verity feel homesick again. But she shoved the thoughts away and began climbing the staircase very cautiously.

Many maids and servants passed her, without even taking notice of her. The staircase was a wooden one and it creaked under her feet. She kept climbing until she came to a landing. It was a wide but length wise a short corridor. It was filled with various stone statues and glass sculptures. The place even smelled of some strong kind of paint. That was something new for the young star, who had spent all her life up till now in a forest.

She stared at the beautifully sculpted statues of young maidens and of strange looking men. The sculptures also included a replica of a castle and some kind of cactus. She really admired the art works of the artists in this mysterious place. But then again she reminded herself that she had to find out what was going on in the palace.

She was about to turn back and head downstairs when her sharp eyes caught something. Behind one of the glass sculptures and the other end of corridor was something like a stone panel. It was slightly ajar. Her curiosity won over her fear. She walked over to the glass sculpture and moving it aside, stepped near the panel and using her full strength slid it aside. The stone panel groaned a little but gave away. She peered inside.

It was an extremely dark place with no windows and no sign of light penetrating in. It had a musty smell about it like it had not been opened in many years. She stepped in, her eyes which were made for the dark automatically adjusted and she felt immediately surprised at the sight she saw.

It was a bedroom full of cobwebs and spider webs hanging from the ceiling. It might have once been a beautiful place with oil lamps and a four poster bed. In fact the oil lamps still hung from the ceiling but they were dusty and seemed to be untouched for a long time. The four poster bed in the middle of the room had its curtains with holes from the dust mites.

The room which Verity had thought had no windows actually had windows but they were for some reason blackened up. Verity's gaze swept the room and stopped at a trunk. It was a metal trunk with brightly colored designs of flowers and leaves painted on its lid. The lock on it was rusty and quickly gave away when Verity shoved it. She carefully opened the lid so as to make the least noise. In it were clothes like the ones Verity used to wear back home, silver gown with white cloak. There were some empty photo frames, jewelry with mostly silver as the main background, slippers and even a lovely diamond tiara. At the very bottom of the trunk she found a small case, the size of her palm, which she picked up. The case was made of gold and on its lid a name was etched. It was the only item so far that was not made of silver.

Verity read: _'_ _Fable'_. That was the name written. She frowned. 'Wait. That was a name heard before. But where?' Verity thought.

She opened the case. In it were locks of silver hair, just like Verity's.

"Does it look familiar? The hair I mean." A familiar voice jolted her into reality. Her head snapped up and she turned to look behind. His Majesty stood there with his hands folded and a strange look on his face. Verity got up, unable to say anything; her eyes darting from the gold case to the monarch's face.

"It does look familiar but whom do these locks of hair belong to?" Verity finally said. His Majesty sighed. He dusted off some cobwebs from his robes which Verity noticed now were different from the ones he had worn at court.

"It is a good question. I will answer it but not now. Now we need to talk and this isn't the right place." He said. "Come with me. Take the gold case with you and yes shut the trunk."

Verity did as she was bid. His Majesty led the way out and one of his guards standing outside shut the door behind Verity and then replaced the glass sculpture. They descended the steps and now when they came to the junction, His Majesty took the passage that passed by Verity's room and then up another staircase. This was followed by many other corridors, staircases and even halls. Whereupon Verity began feeling giddy.

Finally they stopped in front of a set of double-doors, intricately carved with gold and studded with oddly cut pieces of glass. It was pretty and well-done. One of the guards, with orange beard and a brown bushy moustache threw open the doors and they stepped in a large chamber which made Verity feel even more giddy but amazed. It had a high dome-shaped roof with studded glass pieces. A long table stood at the centre of the room with many high and luxurious chairs on its either sides. There was a refreshing fragrance in the air. But the only drawback of the room was that it had two large windows on both its ends and bright sunlight flooded the room. Verity winced.

His Majesty ordered his guards to close the windows and pull the drapery over it. They did so and then returned to their position outside the doors, closing the doors behind them.

"Sit down. This a meeting room where generally my council meets but since I could not find a more secretive and smaller place than this, I brought you here." His Majesty began offering a chair to Verity which she politely refused. "You put forth a proposal to me some days ago. I considered it and I have decided that I accept your request. I shall grant you your wish but….. only after you complete the task. Do you agree to it?"

Verity beamed and said, "Yes sir, I do agree. Thank you for considering my proposal. What is the task?"

"The task is in some way related to that gold case in your hand, Ramandu's daughter. Can you guess?" His Majesty said with a small smile. Verity's smile vanished to be replaced by a look of shock. Many thoughts swirled in her mind. But the only thing she said when she opened her mouth to speak was "How do you know my father?"

"It seems you have a lot to learn, Starlet Verity. This is just the beginning." The monarch said with a sigh.


	5. A Monarch's Tale

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 ** _A Monarch's tale._**

After that Verity listened and His Majesty explained. She had not known that all this was as deep as that. But it created a great impact on her mind.

He said, "You are here for a special cause. I specially called for you. Aslan suggested me your name when I inquired to him about a capable star for my task. That suggests a lot about you and you have already proved yourself ready for it.

Now you have seen that room. You have seen the trunk and its contents. I also believe that you certainly understand and guess who is the owner of those contents. I will now explain to you first the task and then the answer to your query.

Fable, to whom these locks of hair belong to, was my wife. She was beautiful, brave and kind. I first met her when I was a prince and was out on tour of my father's kingdom. I was returning back when we lost our way and none of the ministers could find a way out. She appeared in front of my chariot and showed us a way back home. After that coincidently we kept on meeting each other and soon fell in love. At that time marrying a star was a blessing and she soon became the queen as I ascended the throne. She helped me rule over my subjects and always thought for the good of my people. The people too were happy and everything was going well in my kingdom.

Then one day I had to go on a military excursion and Fable refused to accompany me. So I left the palace with my guards escorts and a few advisors. I returned from the trip quite satisfied only to be informed that Fable, my lovely queen had disappeared. I searched for her far and wide.

I yelled out to the heavens for my Fable to be found. But all of this was to no avail. My queen never returned back. When I returned to my room, I found a few locks of her hair on the dressing table with a note that read: 'I am sorry.'

I was shocked. I mourned and mourned and nearly went into depression. This resulted into me neglecting my kingdom. Fortunately no one took disadvantage of the situation, but I have never been the same since then.

Fable had to leave me in order to play her role in nature. But I know wherever she is she still loves me. The loss made me harsh on my subjects and the peace and justice of my kingdom was lost. People began fearing me. I just don't know how I have survived so much.

You, Verity, daughter of the noble star Ramandu have to bring back Fable. You have to convince your folks to let her come back. I am sure you will be able to do this. Tell her that her Finnian still loves her."

King Finnian collapsed onto a chair, shaking and crying. To see that small man cry made Verity feel pity for the person. But King Finnian brought himself together and continued, "I have to still answer your question. When I talked to Aslan and asked him about the stars. He told me that there aren't many kind and helping stars. But Ramandu is one good star. He said that Ramandu has a daughter too. She is capable of completing this job successfully because she is brave and clever and more importantly destined for something great. Verity I beg of you to fulfill my wish."

Verity could not say anything so she just reached and patted his shoulder. She bowed low and stepped out of the chamber in a daze, leaving the king broken in her wake. One guard escorted her back to her room. The other woman was sitting and massaging her head. It was bruised. The starlet sighed and changed her clothes. She gave the woman her clothes and humbly apologized. The woman wore her clothes and left muttering something under her breath.

Verity sat down on her bed, thinking. She was completely tired and yet excited. She replayed the story in her mind and almost smiled to herself. Lord Aslan had chosen her for the task and that certainly was an honor. On the other hand she wondered as to how she was going to complete this request.

Just then the door of her room opened and Dr. Ace Mines walked in. He wore grey robes and a black cloak. His face held a half worried and half displeased expression. Verity knew what he was going to say and waved her hand saying, "All stories to be exchanged later Ace. I am tired and right now the only thing I am going to do is get some sleep. Do not disturb." With that she pulled up her blankets and rolled off to sleep not waiting for Ace to leave the room.

Verity woke up many hours later to find herself in full glow. She knew it was night. She got out from her bed and went over to the window to look at the moon. It was beautiful and bright. The cool breeze blew making her smile. When it will be dawn she would have to get ready and leave for her quest. She knew it that now she had made her decision and there was no turning back.

While all this was good, there was one major problem; she did not have a plan. She had no idea what she will face outside the protective walls of the palace. She needed more information about the place, a map, some weapons and - her friends. She was not sure that Lux and Ace would accompany her on her quest but she needed them. They had saved her twice when she was injured and weak.

She decided that she will talk to them about her mission at dawn. Now she needed to find a place with books or maps. In order to do that she will have to explore the palace more and at night when she glowed that certainly was impossible. Her glowing body would wake up any guards on patrol in the corridors. Just then an idea struck her.

She walked over to the window looked down at the ground below the window. There were no guards and the land was snowy. She waited to see if anyone came by. Fifteen minutes passed but no one came. Verity sat on the window sill then slowly put her feet out and jumped. She spread out her hands, as she fell, decreasing the speed. She landed lightly on the snow, unhurt. She smiled to herself. Being a starlet had its advantages after all.

It was colder outside but Verity was immune to it. She never feared the cold and knew how to survive the coldest of atmospheres. It was one good thing. She peered into the night on her either sides and took her right hand side way. She kept walking and peeping into the windows. At one point she would have almost ran into a guard if she wouldn't have lain herself on her stomach in the snow. The snow camouflaged her dress and body well enough. She was saved.

Finally she gave up searching on the ground level. She stood in a spot, spread out her gown around her, then grasping invisible handles in the air she pushed her body up and she hovered in the air. She looked into the nearest window and saw a maid cleaning, what looked like the kitchen counters. Then the maid suddenly looked out of the window right at Verity! But the starlet ducked in time and making swimming gestures in the air, flew away. Verity never easily gave up and therefore kept peering in the windows.

At last after a long search, she found what she wanted. Through a window she saw a room filled with books on shelves. 'Good!' she thought, 'now I can search for the information I want.' She tried pushing the window open but it won't budge. She tried pulling at it but to no avail. Then she saw that the window was locked from inside with a big sturdy lock.

"In the name of Aslan! How do I open this window?" the young star murmured. She bit her lip nervously. Her father had taught her some magic but none of that included opening closed windows. An idea struck her and she hoped it would work. She flew to the window next to it and found that it was locked too. She flew to the next one, muttering silent prayers, and she found it unlocked! She pushed it open and stepped inside. The window creaked a little and she paused. But hearing no sounds she walked as silently as she could through the rows of bookshelves feeling their spines and trying to judge if they were of any use to her.

The library was huge and filled with dust. There were at least billions of books. There were at least thousands of languages of which Verity couldn't recognize any. Her father had taught her all languages back home in her land. She had loved all of them and knew to converse in all of them well enough. But here everything always seemed different. She walked on unaware of the fact that as the night went on her glow had intensified and someone was watching her.

She was getting tired of searching when her eyes rested on a book on a higher shelf. She allowed herself to rise a little and pull out the book. The book was a hard bound with an olive green cover and an intricate binding. Surprisingly she recognized the script. It was goblin script. The book said, "Roads to Silver." She frowned as she read the title. If there was a book in goblins' language then that meant goblins existed in this world too. Though the stars, and no one in particular, went along well with the goblins, she had to find them. They were the ones who always know a lot. But the only worst part and it was a major one about confronting a goblin was that one should be able to negotiate with a goblin well. They were mischievous and sly folks.

"That is a helpful book." A nonchalant and yet confident voice made her whirl around sharply. A tall, lean figure of a woman stood at one end of the row of shelves behind her.

"M..Mother!?" Verity stammered.

 **I am really sorry guys for not updating for a year. But life has become busy these days.**

 **What do you think about this chapter? I would love to know your comments.**

 **What do you think about this sudden entry?**

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	6. The Nocturnal Escape Plans

Paste your docu

The Nocturnal Escape Plans.

She looked way different from the woman she knew to be her mother. She looked older and more patient than she had been before. But what struck Verity more was the fact that her father had lied to her. Up until now she had thought that the stars were incapable of lying and that they were always supposed to tell the truth, now it seemed as if everything she believed was a lie. Too many questions flooded her mind, just the way they had when she had first arrived in that unknown land, as she looked at woman in front of her.

"So… You were never an Archenlander?" Verity asked trying to keep her voice stable. Her curiosity had perked up again. "Father lied to me. Why didn't you tell me the truth? Why did you leave me?"

"I don't believe this is the time to have this conversation, Verity. I will definitely answer all your questions but when the time comes. For now, I am here to give you this. Take it and leave this palace as soon as possible. Finnian isn't the most trustworthy person." The older woman said, handing her daughter a neatly rolled up parchment and a small vial of a bright silver potion.

Verity took it without a question but before she could examine the parchment, her mother spoke up again, "Not now, my child, not now. You will use it later. But before I take my leave, I will give you a small piece of free advice. Take Ace and Lux Mines along with you. They will help you accomplish your task. Verity, do your best because it is your only chance of survival. You are still young and you have a great future ahead. Don't waste your life. Live it!"

Verity stared at her mother as she disappeared in the shadows. She did not believe that her life can get any stranger than this. The starlet looked at the objects in her hand and sighed. She knew what the silver swirling liquid was, a special healing potion for the stars. It contained celestial dust and moonlight along with a silver hair. She had never actually used it but had seen her father use it once or twice. The roll of parchment, she decided, was most probably a map.

The starlet was about to turn around and leave when a sudden commotion made her stop. The next few minutes were the most shocking for her. There were sounds of running feet and shouts. She saw people running outside with weapons and burning torches, mostly palace guards. Verity quickly glanced outside and knew there were only a few hours for the sun to rise, that meant her light was dimming and that meant she could sneak out unnoticed. She had to get to her friends before it was too late. She peeked out of the doors of the library into the corridor and seeing that the coast was clear, she ran out. After that everything was a blur and people she passed by were so engrossed in running for whatever reason that had alarmed them that they did not notice her. She kept running, occasionally glancing at the sky outside the windows. It was still dark but she knew she was running out of time.

The starlet just turned the corner to get to Lux's room and then she understood what the ruckus was about. She could see her friend's room at the other end of the corridor but it was in flames. The door was almost a hole now. Maids and servants were hauling buckets of water at the site but Verity knew that the damage was already done. Worst of all was the fact that she couldn't see her best friend anywhere. She scanned the area for Ace but even he was not visible. Her heart was now hammering against her chest and dread filled her. The past few weeks seemed to her like a dream now. The girl who had helped her cope with the messy situation that she was in was probably severely hurt and she couldn't do anything just because fire was her weak point. She stood rooted at the spot, watching the whole situation anxiously.

Ace appeared in the doorway of the burning room, his clothes and face covered in soot. Verity could make out the burn on his hand even from far but what made her sink to the ground was his dead expression. Somehow she understood that expression and though a part of her did not want to believe it, she knew she had to accept it. The girl she had called her best friend was dead. Lux Mines was gone. Tears fell freely from her eyes and for the first time she understood what true pain was. She closed her eyes, shutting out the world around her. Anger, pain, grief all swelled up inside her at once. She was about to give in to her aching heart when someone placed his hand on her shoulder, bringing her back to reality.

Verity opened her eyes and looked up to see Ace kneeling down beside her. Without thinking even once, the starlet pulled her other best friend into a hug. She hoped what she was doing was right since she had no idea of human emotions but Ace relaxed in her arms. "Verity," he whispered in her ear making her flinch a little. "leave this place while you've got the time. It is not safe for you any longer."

Verity immediately pulled back to look at Ace in the eye. "You need to come too. I was searching for you and…. And her earlier. I wanted to tell you that we need to leave already. I don't think that you are safe either." She replied firmly, though the thought of leaving Lux without a proper funeral hurt her. But her mother's words warned her that she needed to be careful from now on.

"I…I can't Verity. I can't leave Lux like that. She is…..I mean was my sister after all. You should go, though." Ace choked.

"Ace, we're going to find out who did this to your sister. We have to get out of this place. Please Ace, please help me. You're my best friend too and I definitely don't want to lose you." Verity got up and glanced out of the window. They had only an hour to go. In an hour the sun would begin to rise and she would lose her chance to run away. She quickly whirled around and grabbing Ace by his shoulder, dragged him to his feet. The next moment they were running or more like she was making him run. "Sorry Ace, I can't give you an option anymore. I'm kidnapping you."

They ran down several passages and staircases without a word. "You have to help. Tell me the way out." Verity panted as they stopped at a junction and turned to look at Ace in the eye.

Ace bent down to tie his shoelaces, then looked at her and folded his arms across his chest.

"And why should I help you kidnap myself. I don't want to come voluntarily with you. I don't want to help you unless you give me a strong enough reason." He retorted, narrowing his eyes.

Verity sighed and placed her hands on her hips. "Because it is going to help us avenge Lux's death. We have to first get Queen Fable back to the palace and Ace hurry up! I don't have time to explain you everything all over again."

Ace was about to argue when they heard shouts coming from their right. Apparently someone had noticed their disappearance and now the palace guards were searching for them. They did not have much choice than to run before they were caught. Ace locked eyes with Verity and made his final decision. Grabbing her hand, Ace shot off down the passage that led them to the kitchens. The shouts were growing closer and they had no other choice but to hide somewhere till they got a proper chance to make the run. As they turned another corner, Ace spotted a door to a small temporary grain room and pushed it open. He shoved first Verity inside then followed in closing the door behind him.

Verity felt exhausted now. "Do you have a watch?" she whispered in the dark.

"Yes but I can't see anything in the dark. Sorry," came the reply.

Verity leaned on a sack and closed her eyes. She knew that her time was ticking. She knew that Ace was crying silently only a little way away. She knew that less than an hour ago she had lost someone whom she had started considering as her family. She knew she should be crying too. But all she wanted then was rest.

Verity was about to lose herself in sound sleep when a shout outside the door jolted her awake.

"Did you find them there, Ceph? I searched the kitchens and staff claims they haven't seen a soul other than themselves." A man's voice called out.

"No Kai, let's search the orchards of the West. They have a good hiding place there." A thick voice replied.

Verity's heart was hammering against her chest. She hoped that the men would not notice the door. She felt Ace stop crying and stiffen up. She only relaxed a little when she heard retreating footsteps.

"What should we do now?" Ace whispered in the dark, trying to grasp hold of Verity.

Verity immediately clamped her hand on his mouth and spoke softly bringing her mouth near his ear. "Shhh! Don't talk. Pay attention to what I say. We've almost run out of time now. As soon as the sun rises, I will need shelter but at the same time we can't stay in this place for too long. Do you know some kind of an outhouse or just any type of a shelter which is outside the main palace but not far from the exit? So that we can make our escape when the time's right."

Ace thought about it and finally and idea came to his mind. "Verity, wait here till I return. I've an idea and if it works then it would be easier for us to escape." He whispered back to her.

Verity frowned and then realized that Ace couldn't see her in the dark. "Where are you going?" she asked a little suspiciously. She hoped that he was not planning to back out from their escape plan because if that was the case then she would never be able to break out from the palace and she would be stuck in some prison or facing whatever punishment they gave the people who disobeyed the King. She wouldn't be able to handle betrayal.

"Trust me, Verity. I will not betray you." Ace replied to her question _almost as if he read her mind._

Verity's mind seemed to complete the unsaid words that hung in the air between them ' _And if you dare betray me, I will make you suffer the consequences!'_

 **Hey! I'm back. Now this chapter might not be very impressive but I would like to hear your comments. Don't forget to leave one!**

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	7. A Friend's Help

A Friend's Help.

"Thea! Thea! Are you there?" Ace entered the kitchens, his eyes searching for the petite brunette.

"Master Ace! It's been a long time…." Thea began appearing out of thin air in front of Ace and then a frown appeared on her narrow face. "Oh! They were searching for you."

The redhead pushed his glasses up his nose and silenced the rambling of the kitchen maid. The other kitchen staff didn't seem to notice their exchange. As his turquoise eyes gazed into her ice blue ones, he remembered the day when he had first met her.

 _"_ _Oh come on Lux! Walk faster! I will die if I don't eat now." Ace chided his sister as they ran towards the kitchens._

 _This was the third time they had managed to fool the guards outside their room and run away to get some food for themselves. They were practically running for their lives. They just turned the corner when they crashed into someone. The plates smashed onto his head and the food spilling on his clothes and faces. A girl's scream echoed through the corridor. Then a strange silence fell._

 _"_ _What the hell was that!?" Ace managed to say through the mess. He tried to straighten but his pounding head refused him to get up. Someone tried to turn him, shift him on his back but his vision went black._

 _The last thing he heard was a gasp._

 _Sometime later, his eyes opened to a dim lighted room. The place was completely unfamiliar to his eyes. His sight cleared and he tried to lift his head up from the not-so-soft pillow but again his head injury made him fall right back._

 _"_ _Ace! You okay? Bro I was worried." He heard Lux's voice and then she came in sight. She had a bandage on her head and eyes filled with worry and concern which Ace had rarely seen. But it was there alright._

 _The boy was about to speak when another face appeared seemingly out of nowhere. It was a girl with soft brown hair, ice blue eyes, a narrow face and pale pink lips. An uncomfortable silence fell around them as the redhead boy stared at the young brunette._

 _Lux cleared her throat. Ace laughed in an attempt to release the tension in the room. "Where are we, Lux? Who is this girl?"_

 _"_ _This is Thea. She works in the kitchens. She was carrying food to the nobles' residence and we happened to crash into her. Poor girl! She lied for us," Was the instant reply._

 _"_ _That's not a problem, Madam Mines. They don't give you enough food. Trust me I will never alert them if you come to the kitchens for food. Come anytime, I will help you." The girl, Thea spoke up._

 _Her voice was soft and melodious yet it held some peculiar emotion that Ace couldn't quite keep his finger on. But it was sure a strong one. One that he could notice was reflecting in her eyes too. It scared him as well as made him respect her._

Thea snapped her fingers in front of his eyes and Ace came back to reality. He shook his head to remind himself why he had come to her in the first place and dragged her to one corner. "I need your help, Thea." He said lowering his voice.

"With food!?" Thea asked, preparing to get Ace some food but the latter grabbed her hand to make her stop.

The boy tried his best to mask his obvious exasperation and spoke with a deliberate gentleness, "Thea, it is not food I want help with. It is something else. Something more important and I know only you will be able to help us."

"Us? Oh! You mean Madam Lux and you." Thea asked, her face morphing into excitement.

Ace's stomach seemed to have clenched at the mention of his recently deceased sister. But he held back the tears and cleared his throat. He just did not have time any longer to cry for her. He will have to wait to let out his grief and pain.

"Thea, do you know a place which is near to the palace gates and not close to the palace itself?" he asked, ignoring her question.

" _I_ live near to the palace gates. I mean not very near but near enough so I can see the gates from my window. The servants' quarters are all there. It is near the South side." Thea replied, bewildered.

"Why would you want to know though? She asked suspiciously.

"Do you like living in the palace? Do you like this life of poverty, misery and slavery?" Ace asked instead again deciding to ignore her question.

The maid's eyes widened at his words and she gaped at him. It was clear that what he had asked her had completely baffled her and caught her off guard.

"Master Ace! I grew up here. I don't have any other place to go if I didn't live here. Of course I have to like living here." She replied indignantly.

Ace shook his head, clicking his tongue in frustration and held the girl by her shoulders. "I didn't mean that. You don't _have_ to like anything. Do you wish to stay here? If you could get out of here, will you?"

Thea bit her lip nervously, her eyes sweeping round the place. She finally untied her apron and kept it on the kitchen counter. She set her jaw and tied her hair up in an untidy bun. As Ace watched her, the words 'determined' and 'rebellious', seemed to flash in his mind. He could now recognize the emotion he had seen in her eyes, all those months back. He realized that it simply fascinated him.

"I never really was a fan of this palace. Where are we going?" her voice was firm and low with a resolved air in it and it somehow didn't surprise Ace when her tone changed.

He understood now as to why he had sought her out, out of everyone in the whole palace that he knew. His instincts had guided him correctly. Ace took in a deep breath at that thought.

His countenance changed into a knowing smile and he grabbed her hand, throwing a quick glance at the other people working silently in the kitchens. The kitchen servants threw furtive glances at them but said nothing. Ace pushed open the door and made sure the coast was clear. He stepped out and Thea followed suit.

"Where is Lux? Is she waiting for us somewhere?" Thea whispered, who seemed to have momentarily forgotten that she was just a kitchen maid.

Ace inhaled sharply and whispered back, "I'll tell you everything when the time comes, Thea. Till then please trust me. I have someone to introduce you to."

"I trust you, Ace Mines. I just hope you do the same. If we have to get out of here then we have to hurry. The guards on patrol duty change shifts at exactly 7:00 am. If we're able to slip through the servants' quarters at that time then it would be better. We would attract less attention."

Ace looked at her in wonder at her accuracy of time. "Have you been planning this before? How can you be so accurate?"

A smirk crept on her face as she answered, "All my life."

* * *

Verity was waiting patiently for her best friend to return. She could already feel the night slowly coming to an end and she guessed the time to be somewhere near 6:00 am. She was not sure if she would be able to escape even if Ace returned now. She had already replayed the events of the day before almost ten times before. Her strange encounter with her mother, the book in goblin script, the map and the silver liquid, Lux Mines' death, her narrow escape from the palace guards and most of all her mother's warning.

It was the only thing that had perked up her curiosity. What did her mother know about King Finnian and Queen Fable? What was she doing in a world away from Narnia? What lay ahead on her way to the Queen's current residence? And most importantly where was her mother right now?

After all the shock from the day before she just wanted someone she knew to be near her. She had never felt so insecure and unsure of her life. If someone out there was cruel enough to set fire to her best friend's room then she was not out of danger. She had even made a deal with the King, had intruded in his room and made him share his memories.

She was about to sit down again when the door opened.

* * *

Ace pushed open the door to the grain room which startled Thea but she didn't say anything. It took her some time to adjust to the darkness. The place was clean and filled with grain sacks. She had been here plenty of times with her other friends but now when she entered it with Ace, it felt strange.

"Ace? Who's this?" a voice in the dark made her jump. Then the mistress of the voice appeared and Thea gasped.

"Verity, this is my friend Thea and Thea I assume you know who she is?" Ace looked between the two girls as he made their introductions.

"Where is Lux?" Thea repeated her earlier question after an awkward silence, her voice soft and scared.

"Ace, you did not tell her about Lux? I thought she is your friend." Verity turned to look at the boy in question, sarcasm dripping her words.

Verity's tone took Ace aback. He never remembered Verity being so harsh with her words. She had always been so calm and collected and soft-hearted that it felt strange hearing her say that.

Even in the dark, both the girls could see his face scrunch up and a frown appear on his face. Verity sighed knowingly while Thea watched them bewildered.

"Can't we talk about this some other day? We're already running out of time." Ace replied, desperately trying to change the topic.

"Fine. But once we get out of the palace boundaries and we're at a safe distance, you're going to tell me everything. Also, you told me nothing about the starlet being here." Thea countered, stubbornly.

"Wait a minute! You know who I am? I don't believe I ever told any stranger that I was a star. Ace?" Verity said, alarmed at the brunette's words.

She felt uncomfortable. _Had Ace and Lux told everyone in the palace about her past?_ The thought made her completely vexed and unsettled. Her face reddened and it glowed in the dark.

Ace did not respond, just glanced at his watch.

"We have exactly 45 minutes to 7. The decision is yours. Do you want to stand here discussing about the past events or make the run?" he said.

"We need to disguise ourselves if we have to do this unnoticed. Especially you two. Any guard will easily recognize you if you go out there with your simple, everyday clothes." Thea observed, deciding to ignore the topic and focus on their escapade.

* * *

Thea, Ace and Verity ran through the corridors as Thea guided them towards the servants' quarters. Verity was now wearing an ankle-length, full sleeved brown dress with a cream colored headdress. She had secured her hair in a bun under the headdress. Thea had supplied her with some traditional jewelry which Verity had no idea where she had got from. She now even had some make-up like the other girls working in the kitchen. The girl had made sure that the starlet looked very much like a simple, kitchen maid.

Ace too had disguised himself like a servant. His hair had been flattened and he wore rags as clothes. Dirty trousers and old shoes was his main outfit. Thea also gave him a small dagger and a pocket knife while she herself carried a bottle of acid for self-defence.

The three of them hadn't spotted a single guard along their way. It surprised even Verity who wasn't use to walking in the palace much because she had always seen so many servants and guards walking about when she had ventured out of her room the past two times. It was almost scary. They had prepared themselves for all of it; questioning was the priority and now there was not a single guard in sight.

"Are they all out there searching for you and me?" Verity whispered to Ace.

The thought made her shudder. _What if they were all ready to pounce on them the minute they are spotted?_ She shook her head in determination, trying to shake off her fears.

The redhead simply shrugged and answered, "I have no idea but if that's the case then we're dead before we even see sunlight. We would never reach the servants' quarters."

Thea shushed them as they reached the final door which would lead them outside. Verity quickly squinted out of the nearest window and her breath hitched. She turned to look at her companions who were catching their breath and trying out a way to open the locked door.

"We are dead." The starlet softly spoke.


	8. A Narrow Escape

**_Italic means Verity's thoughts._**

* * *

 ** _A Narrow Escape._**

Ace and his kitchen friend raised their eyebrows at Verity's words. Both of them had been trying to prise open the door and Verity's sudden statement had made them turn around.

"What's the matter?" Ace hissed, his brows furrowing in disapproval.

Verity only pointed towards the window in response. Her eyes filled with apprehension. Thea immediately glanced out and gasped.

"Ace! The guards are all out there. They are running about making sure there is extra security at each gate. Ceph, Kai and Commander Otto are heading towards the Western gates!"

"How do you know all this, Thea?"

"I saw them going in that direction. The western side of the palace is well equipped with armory. There are three watch towers there. All of them keep watch of different gates. As per my information, the palace has three gates: The Southern gate, The Western Gate and the Dead Bull gate. Now these watch towers keep track of the happenings of all of these gates."

"Couldn't you tell us all that before, genius? Now how are we to get out of here, unseen!?" Verity said, completely frustrated.

Thea bit her lip, feeling foolish. Her mind was racing for an answer to Verity's question.

"How do you get your supplies?" Ace who had been listening to Thea's rambling about the gates, now spoke up.

"The peasants and other artisans who have been assigned the work of getting all the royal provisions and necessary equipment send their representatives with their articles." Thea replied.

"When?"

"In the afternoon. But not everyday. They come at the end of every month."

"So when is this month ending?"

"Ace, we can't wait till the end of this month. We have to…." Verity began but Thea interjected.

"It's ending today. The supplies will be arriving this afternoon."

"Thea, can we stay in your house till afternoon? Verity can't get out in the sun." Ace asked, completely ignoring Verity

Verity sucked in her breath sharply at that. Casting her friend a disapproving look, the starlet cussed under her breath. She hated feeling so exposed just like any self respecting person. Ace on the other hand seemed oblivious to her discomfort. _Really!? What had gone wrong with that guy?_

"Can't get out in the sun!?" Thea asked repeating Ace's words with a frown. The statement didn't make any sense to her.

"She is a star. So when the powerful sun touches her…." Ace began.

"Enough! Thea, can we stay at your place or not till afternoon?" Verity interrupted him.

Ace adjusted his glasses confusedly but kept quiet at the other's glare. Thea looked between them perplexed but answered to Verity's question anyway

"You can come with me home. We'll have to be careful though, extremely careful."

Without any further argument, Verity pushed open the window beside her and peeked out to make sure no one was near enough to attack directly then jumped out. Her big grey eyes scrutinized her surroundings and when she found nothing, glanced at the sky. The sky was a reddish tinge, slowly turning golden as the sun rose.

A cold breeze hit her but it didn't make her shiver having being used to the cold since her birth. The weather usually never affected her. The sun had always been the only problem with her.

"Let's go! They might see us if we keep standing here for long." A voice behind her said and she didn't need to turn around to know that it belonged to Thea.

Verity agreed and let Thea lead the way. Ace fell in step behind her. They kept in the shade, often hiding behind pillars and making sure they weren't being watched.

The starlet tried her best not to feel scared. _What if they didn't make it? What if they are caught and imprisoned? What if Thea betrayed them?_ The thoughts made her heart beat faster and made her want to give up the quest altogether. But then seeing the observant guards she realized that it was no more possible for her to turn back.

She was walking behind Thea when someone pulled her away, catching her bicep. She almost yelped as a hand covered her mouth. She was about to struggle when she realized that the person holding her was none another than Ace. He released his grip when Verity stopped struggling and she frowned at him. The boy pointed to a little way off. There were shadows, silhouettes of at least three people behind a pillar.

Thea seemed to have already seen the danger and hidden. The three rebellious youngsters watched in anticipation and apprehension. A few moments passed and nothing happened. Verity was holding onto Ace for support.

Then the figures moved and a well built man stepped out of the shadows. He had dark brown hair, a goatee and quite a handsome face. His eyes had a strange color that Verity couldn't quite make out. But they were scary. The man held a rolled up whip in his scarred arm and wore strange bright colored clothes: red trousers, a yellow shirt and neon blue boots paired with fluorescent green cowboy hat.

"What kind of clothes are these?"

Verity heard Ace mutter to himself, beside her. She could easily agree to that.

"I haven't seen any of the other guards wear something that awful." She murmured back.

The two of them turned their attention back to the guards and realized that all three of them had moved out of the shadows. They were walking back up the way Verity, Ace and Thea had come from. As the guards went out of sight, they heaved a sigh of relief. Thea inched out of her hiding place and motioned them to follow her. They obliged.

"Um…. Thea do you know that man? The one with strange clothes." Ace asked slowly.

Thea chuckled and replied, "That was General Zu."

"Zoo!? How can anyone's name be zoo?" Ace asked absolutely mortified.

"Why not?"

"Zoo is a place in my world where animals are kept caged for people to see."

"We don't keep animals in cages." Thea and Verity spoke together.

Ace just sighed. "We do. There are people trying to create awareness to not cage animals but for the time being we do have animals chained."

Almost twenty minutes later of dodging the guards, they arrived at a low fence. Beyond the fence was a small pathway flanked by little shacks and huts on both the sides. It was pretty sight; little shrubs, medicinal plants, smoke out of makeshift chimneys, a child running from one house to another, chatting women. It made Verity want to live there and be one of them. At least she would be able to live in a community rather than on an isolated island. Though the people were poor, they seemed cheerful and content with their life and that's what she wanted, to be content with her life which she often did not feel.

"This is the place I live. The servants' quarters." Thea said standing beside her.

"Come on! The entrance is here." She said pulling, Ace's arm towards a little gap in the fence.

Verity followed in, sweeping a glance behind to make sure no one was following them. When she did not find anything suspicious, she turned her attention back to her travel companions who had walked on.

As they passed several huts, people's gazes pursued them all along as if they knew what the three of them were up to. Verity avoided eye contact as much as possible but when she would occasionally look around, she would see the dilapidated houses and the unshed tears in their owners' eyes. She could see hunger and misery on their faces. Though there weren't many people around since most of them had already set off to their work, she could still see the children and the old ones walking around.

Finally Thea and Ace came to a stop in front of a worn down shack. Verity almost ran in to them, making Ace chuckle softly. She muttered a quick 'sorry'.

"Ace Mines, do you remember this place?" Thea asked turning to look at the boy.

"Of course! Thea, I met you here for the first time. I do remember this place." Ace said, smiling down at the brunette with warmth.

Verity's keen eyes did not fail to notice this. She made a mental note to ask Ace about this later. _What did Thea mean to him?_

The trio entered the shack and Thea quickly made place for them to sit. She brought them some soup and pieces of what Verity suspected to be stale bread.

"What now? I mean I know that we have to wait till the supplies arrive but after that what? How are we to get out unseen?" Thea asked as they devoured their little meal.

"Okay, I've got a plan. I'm not sure if it is foolproof or no but at least I do have some ideas. Thea, I chose you to come with us because you know the palace well and also you're my friend. You've proven useful too. Now I want some more of your help." Ace began, twiddling his fingers.

 _How dramatic!_

Verity and Thea watched him with their full attention, wondering what was going on in the boy's mind. Verity felt tired as the sun rose higher up in the sky and the urge to go to sleep was overwhelming but she forced herself to stay awake. She knew that the mission was somehow more important than her weakness.

"I want you to show Verity and I a place to hide which is as near as possible to the gates. It should be shady there. One more thing is that I want exact information of the security. How many guards are placed at the gates? What weapons do they use? At exactly what time do the supplies arrive? I want all these questions answered." Ace continued.

"There are two guards at the gate. Cole and Owen are their names. I know them well actually." Thea began, clearing her throat.

"They both use spears and shields. They have a dagger as a second weapon. The supplies usually arrive at 2:30 sharp. Sometimes at 3:00. But they always give us notice if they're going to be late." She continued.

"How long have you been observing all this?"

Thea had opened her mouth to speak more when Verity interrupted. She looked completely tired now. Her brain refused to accept any further information. She needed sleep desperately and her head was aching.

"Three years to be precise. I have been planning my escape for a long time." Thea answered with a sigh.

"Why do you want to escape, Thea? What is your problem with the king?" Ace asked with a frown, this time not ignoring Verity.

Thea yawned and rubbing her eyes, let her hair loose. She looked just as much tired as Verity felt.

"This won't be the right place to discuss all that, Ace Mines. I will tell you everything when the right time comes. Till then I reckon we should all get some sleep."

"We should take turns in keeping a watch or we might oversleep. We can't afford missing our chance to run away." Ace pointed out.

He turned to look at Verity and saw that she was already sprawled out on the ground, fast asleep. He couldn't help but chuckle at that. The redhead turned back to the other girl and said, "I'll take the first watch. Do you mind if I let Verity sleep the whole time?"

Thea didn't seem like she wanted to agree but in the end she gave her consent.

* * *

Verity crouched low behind the overgrown hedge, her eyes sweeping the surrounding area like a bird of prey searching for its meal. She was not far away from the guard who Thea informed her to be Cole. He didn't look anything like the other colorful man they had seen in the morning. He wore a plain, faded blue and yellow pants and a shirt. He had an overgrown beard and a thick moustache. He held a strong metal spear in one hand and a large shield in the other.

The starlet averted her gaze to look at Ace and Thea on the other side of the gigantic wrought iron gate. She couldn't see the other guard from her position but she could see her friends. They were sitting together, _too close together,_ their eyes trained on the guard Owen. She couldn't help but role her eyes at that scene.

Verity glanced down at the spare watch that Thea had given her. Her heart rate increased with excitement and anticipation. Her eyes now fixed themselves on the guard and the gates. She did her best to not get too over-excited and give away her shelter. Anytime now. Anytime the gates would open and the supplies would arrive. She had to be quick and agile.

The silver-haired girl replayed the plan of escape in her mind. Two words. Two words described it and she kept repeating them like a mantra. She felt the hedge prickle her slightly as she readjusted her position but it didn't matter now. _Attack. Run. Attack. Run…_

Her eyes once again strayed over to her companions who too seemed to be on edge. They were creating a diversion and then running and for that they had made small catapults and gathered stones. Ace had even collected some leaves of a plant that produced fiery feeling when bare skin touches them as a backup plan. He had made this plan and Verity trusted him. There was not enough time to make foolproof plans so they had to rely on this one anyway.

A loud booming, creaking sound jolted her into reality and Verity focused her eyes on the gate again. The gates were opening. The guard in front of Verity had moved so that the incoming procession could enter. She shot a quick glance back at her friends, who this time returned it, and quietly edged forward. Her catapult was ready in her hand with the stone in its position.

A huge old-fashioned wagon entered. It was quite attractive with its bright red and gold colors and a strange flag on its roof. A man looked out and waved to Cole. The guard waved back and went over to talk to him. After a quick exchange, Cole let the wagon pass.

Verity had swiftly ducked and ran as near to the open exit as she could without losing cover. Then she heard it. A scream filled with immense agony rang out. She knew this was her call. She hurriedly lifted her catapult and pulled the string letting the stone fly at Cole. The stone knocked him out luckily. Verity thanked whichever deity listening that the stone was big enough to knock the guard out. She spared a fleeting look to see if Ace or Thea were visible but they seemed to have vanished. People were running around. There were a lot of other screams and then she realized why.

The wagon that had just entered was on fire. She had absolutely no idea how that had happened but this was her cue to run and that's what she did. She ran like she had never before, trying as much as possible to dodge sunlight. She heard footsteps following her but she did not dare to look behind. Her eyes scanned the area ahead to see possible places to hide. It was a complete thicket ahead.

The forest that lay past the gates was so thick that no light seemed to penetrate through. All kinds of bushes, hedges, tall trees almost everything that Verity thought of seemed visible. Her feet kept moving and she kept hoping that Ace and Thea made it and that her pursuers would stop pursuing her. It was crazy, completely crazy.

She still hadn't reached the tree line and her energy was dropping. Her legs were burning and her head was aching again. She kept up her pace though. Earlier she had seen people even outside the gate who had come with the supplies and that meant that there was a human settlement somewhere. She could figure out even now that it definitely was not close but the prospect of staying in that thick forest seemed too much. Even though back at home she stayed in a forest, well it was still _home._ Also, the forest was not so thick.

The starlet mentally smacked herself for thinking all this when she still hadn't met up with her friends.

"Oi! Will you stop running now!?" A familiar voice yelled behind her.

Verity collapsed. Her legs gave out under her and her head pounded. She was gasping for breath as Ace and Thea came into view. They too were out of breath.

"Wh-Where are we?" Ace asked trying to regain his composure.

Thea shook her head. She was lying on her back, coughing. Verity looked around and saw that the gate was too far and so were the people. Her eyes strayed over to the opposite side and saw the woods merely few meters away.

"I have no idea what to do now. The plan was yours. You have to decide now." Thea breathed. She seemed better now. Her hair was a mess but other than that she seemed fine.

Ace on the other hand had a cut on his left arm that ran down his bicep. Verity got up and inspected it pushing away her own headache. Fortunately it wasn't a deep one so Ace rubbed his handkerchief on it and Verity tied it up onto his arm.

"Are you done?" Thea's drawling voice made them look at her.

"Verity, now that you've kidnapped me and now that I've kidnapped Thea and that Thea has gotten us out of the palace boundaries, what do you think should we do?" Ace said with a knowing look.

Verity just lazily raised her eyebrows, her earlier enthusiasm and attitude returning. She sighed.

"I thought you were the one who promised Thea a story. I did not say I would say anything."

"Fine. So I am to start with the story is it?" Ace asked rhetorically.

"Of course!" Thea exclaimed getting up finally.

"I will tell you everything but there is a little turn of events." Ace paused. "You're going to tell me about your escape reasons. Why and when did you plan all this?"


End file.
